Made in Sunnyvale
Coming soon...
The fall exhibit will delight our visitors with unexpected treasures and snippets of local history. Most residents know that Lockheed, for instance, played a big role in town with their space exploration projects, but did you know that Sunnyvale boasted a company that produced potato chips? Everyone is aware of the long history of fruit production in the valley, but did you know there were also many dairy farms in North Sunnyvale? How about flower nurseries and a distillery, or companies which provided shoe polish, keys and locks, or even radios?
Visit the museum this fall to learn about all of these businesses and be amazed at how rich the production and agriculture business in Sunnyvale used to be and, in many cases, still is.
Time Travelers' Book club
Join us for the next Time Travelers' Book club:
Sunday September 7, 2025, 2 - 4 pm, at the museum
The time period is post-war: 1945 - 1960. Bring a book that was written during that time, or takes place in it, fiction or non-fiction.
Vintage and Yard Sale
This year's Vintage and Yard Sale will be on
Saturday, September 13, 2025
from 8 am to 3 pm
in the museum courtyard
We are now accepting donations for the sale. This includes games, toys, household items and decor, jewelry, tools, linens and china/glass, as well as vintage items. We cannot accept: clothing, books, items in bad condition, big furniture, artwork.
Trails to Rails - Sunnyvale 1840s to 1920s
October 25, 2025 11:00 am to 4:00
An exciting new event is taking shape for the fall: Trails to Rails – the story of Sunnyvale from early trails to the advent of the railroad in the 1860s and how it shaped the city.
The event will highlight this period of the city’s history with many booths from different organizations, activities, and fun. Already scheduled are
- “Old Greenwood” – portrayed by Frank Mullen, bringing one of the important scouts of the Stephens-Townsend-Murphy wagon train to life
- "California Bound” (covered wagon and trail artifacts)
- History Expeditions Team
- Oregon-California Trail Association sharing stories about the wagon trek
- South Bay Historical Railroad Society
- Bay Area Garden Railroad Society running steam engines
- 175-year anniversary of California statehood celebration booth
- a printer’s shop
- live music by various musicians
- plus activities such as games, photo booth, story time for children, doll making, wagon and train crafting, fun with wool
- and a food truck from the popular Sunnyvale Golf Club restaurant Old Greenwood.
Stay tuned for more information and details in upcoming newsletters and on Facebook as the planning progresses.
New Kitchen Item: Dough Box
Visitors will find a new item in the kitchen display at the museum: a "dough box" from the early 1800s. These were used in big households to prepare the dough for bread and other baked goods. All the ingredients were mixed and kneaded in the trough, then the lid was shut for the dough to proof. Once the dough had risen, the baker could form loaves and transfer them to the oven to bake.
We are grateful for the donation of this tool from Mary Chapman, a Sunnyvale resident whose family had kept it for several generations.
